Monogram escutcheon plate



Jan. 12, 1932. M CHERNOW 1,840,567

MONOGRAM ESGUTCHEON PLATE Filed Deo. 19, 1928 FEVE. JZ Z5 xNvENTOR a ATTORNEYS.

Patented Jan. 12, 1932 UNITED STATES MICHAEL CHER-NOW, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW VYGR-K MoNoGRAM EscUTcHEoN PLATE Application led December 19, 1928. Serial No. 326,954.

My present invention is concerned with monogrammed escutcheon plates of the general character disclosed in the prior Patent, No. 1,689,619, granted to me jointly with .'5 Joseph I. Chernow on the 30th day of October, 1928, and which discloses a backing plate attachable to an automobile door or other surface of an article to be thereby ornamentally identified and carrying a plu- O rality of interchangeable character bearing initial or monogram slugs.

It is among the objects of the present invention to provide an escutcheon plate with a wider range of application to convexly or concavely curved supporting surfaces as well as to fiat surfaces, and to expedite or facilitate the application or removal of the monogram slugs with respect to the monogram plates.

Among other objects are to provide a plate and monogram construction which when in place upon an automobile door will afford no projecting sharp edges to catch threads or tear garments of a person who may brush past it, and the application of which even in adaptation to a curved supporting surface will in nowise injure the lingers, or crack the decorative enamel on the plate.

Among other objects of the invention are to provide a monogrammed escutcheon which will combine a rich, attractive appearance with low manufacturing cost and a unit which, due to the nature of the metal em.- ployed may be conveniently stamped with 35 a .coat of arms, lodge insignia ,or other distinguishing field decoration, to supplement the removable character-bearing members.

In accordance with ,a preferred embodif ment of the invention, monogram-receiving 0 pockets or frames stand out in relief on a field (preferably sunken) provided by the plates. When the individual monogram units are placed in the frames they lie substantially flush with the tops thereof and accurately simulate the appearance of integrally bordered monograms raised above the field. By using frames which taper toward their bottoms, in connection with substantially straight-edged monograms, the

l monogram plates are Yguided into place eX- peditiously and before the quicksetting cement which holds them has a chance to harden, and the flaring walls of the monogram frames permit excess cement to squeeze up in the V-shaped spaces between the monogram edges and pocket walls Without lapping over the face of the monograms as might be the case if straight-walled pockets were used.

The sloping pocket walls furthermore facilitate the prying out of one of the charaeter bearing units, so that when a car equipped with one of my escutcheon plates is resold, it is merely necessary to pry out the initials of the old owner and cement in the initials of the new owner. The flaring walls are additionally important in that they accommodate for slight Variations in the theoretically standard size of the monogram plates. Such size differences are apt to occur when the dies from which the monograms are struck become wor sided monogram frame such differences would materially retard the application of an oversized monogram, often permitting the cement to set before the monogram could be pushed home.

In carrying out the invention, the escutehcon plate is made of a suitable bevelable alloy, preferably gold or silver plated, and the ornamental elds thereof are roughened, the

enamel being retained in very minute depressions or pits so that in bending the plate such enamel will not crack as it might if a continuous surface thereof were flexed through a substantial angle.

In connection with this bending act-ion it may be noted that if the plate were applied to a curved surface particularly a concave surface there would be a tendency to bend and distort the walls of the monogram frames inwardly and possibly block the subsequent application of a character bearing plate element. By the use of tapered walls, however, this 4contingency is avoided, the overlying long pocket mouths amply compensating for anyl distortion of the pocket walls'which may occur, as the plate. is being bent to conform to a concave supporting surface.

"With the above noted and other objects in View, the invention consists in certain novel Vith a straight I Fig. 1 is a face view of a monofrrammed escutcheon plate embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is an edge view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged transverse sectional view taken on the diagonal lineB-S'of Fig. 1'.

Fig. e is an enlarged detail plan view of I with an appreciably beveled designates a relatively thin metal relief upon stamped as an incident of forcing the plate fore the monogram is applied.

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional detail showing the manner in which the character bearing elements may be conveniently pried out by a sharp-edged instrument, and

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional detail showing the enamel filling the spaces between the knobs or raised portionsy of the field surface.

In the drawings the reference numeral 10 plate, preferably of gold or silver plated brittania metal or some similar readily bendable alloy.v This plate may assume many configurations, in the present instance being shown as square.

A raised marginal border 11, preferably top 18, serres to define boundaries of a sunken field 12 at the front face of the plate. Standing out in the field 12 and preferably in are insignia o-f any desired description such, for instance, as the plumed helmet le and the shield and scrolls 15 and 16 which x may be supplemented in any desired manner,

as by transverse upstanding ribs 17 that divide the insignia-bearing portions of the field from the central monogram-bearingportion thereof.

The monogram units which I have indi- I cated at 18 are preferably fiat, removable slugs cemented or otherwise secured in suitable upstandlngframes 19 integral with the plate body. The frames are of the same geny eral contour as the slugs 18, in the present instance of ornamental octagonal formation. The frames flare outwardly toward their tops as best seen in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, whereas the character-bearing elements lor slugs 18 have plain edges and are of substantially the same the bases of the receiving pockets which are defined by the frames 19. The slugs 18 may be of bendable metal, if desired, although the curvature imparted to the plate p is ordinarily not so great, as to necessitate bending of the small slugs.

The slugs 18 are preferably stamped to cause the characters thereon to be raised as appears at 24e, the back ground of each slug being coated with a smooth enamel. surface 25 above which the polished character protrudes.

Preferably the bottoms of the pockets defined by frames 19 are corrugated or otherwise roughened to form cavities for the cement, for instance as shown at 2O in Fig. l. Such corrugation is in itself ornamental, so much so that the omission of a monogram slug, as, for instance, for a person without a middle name, is feasible, and the escutcheoned plate would be quite ornamental even with all of the slugs 18 omitted.

in use, the bottoms of the pockets or the backs of the slugs or both are smeared with a quick-setting" cement and the characterbearing elements inserted in the pockets and pushed home.` i The sloping pocket walls guide these elements into 'position even though slightly oversize and the space between the slugs and the walls permits any Y:mess cement to squeeze up between monogram edge and pocket wall, as shown at 21 in Fig. 3 without running over the faces of the monograms.r

rl"he sloping walls of the letter pockets or letter-forming frames also permit the insertion of a sharp instrument such as 22 in Fig. 5 so that a monogram slug may be readily pried out preparatory to its replacement with a new one.

Whether or not the monogram slugs are applied prier er subsequent to the application of the escutcheon plate or support is largely a matter of choice, although I prefer first to apply the escutcheon plate to the support and subsequently to apply the monogram slugs to the escutcheon plate. Cracking of the ornamental enamel 28 which is applied to the unembossed portion of the field 12 is preafented by roughening, ribbing or otherwise treating the surface of the field as best seen in Fig.

The device is entirely devoid ofsharp cutting or thread-catching edges or projections. There is no danger of cutting the fingers when applying the plate or of tearing the garments on it after it is applied.

Fig. 2, in that it illustrates the roundededge construction of the monogram frames and beveled nature of the field bordering rim is indicative of the manner in which curved edges and sharp corners are avoided. The bevel 13 does not taper down to a feather edge but defines a relatively'acute angle with the straight outer edge of the escutcheon plate, whereby the units may be conveniently handled prior to application thereof without danger of cutting the fingers.

ifi-.Then applying the plate to a supporting surface the series of small cement-receiving dents 26 in the rear face of the plate assure firm adhesion, each of them acting to firmly anchor the cement. Furthermore. such depressions or cutouts lighten the weight of the article, as does the field sinking expedient.

It will thus be seen that there is herein described a device in which the several features of this invention are embodied, and which device in its action attains the various objects of the invention and is well suited to meet the requirements of practical use.

As many changes could be made in the above construction, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings sha-ll be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. As a new article of manufacture, a monogrammed escutcheon including a platev portion to be secured against a supporting surface, frames integral with the faces of the plate and defining outwardly flaring pockets, cementing material in the bottom of said pockets and monogrammed units in said pockets held fast by said material, the contour of said units being shaped to form with the inside surfaces of said frames a tapering space surrounding the units to receive excess cementing material and to facilitate removal of said units.

2. Asa new article of manufacture a monogrammed bendable escutcheon plate including a plate portion adapted to be secured upon a supporting surface, outwardly flaremouthed pockets in the face of the plate and monogram units secured in the pockets and of a. contour conforming to the pocket contour said monogram units comprising squareedged slugs.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a monogrammed escutcheon plate including a plate portion adapted to be secured against a. supporting surface, upstanding frames integral with the face of the plate and defining outwardly flare-mouthed pockets and monogram units secured therein by cementing material, said monogram units comprising square-edged slugs, thereby affording a V-shaped groove between the monogram walls and pocket walls for excess cementing material and for the application of a monogram-removing tool.

4f. As a new article of manufacture, a bendable plate adapted to be secured against a i supporting surface, the front face of the plate defining monogram receiving pockets tapering toward their bottoms, the flare of said pockets being sufficient to avoid constriction of the pocket mouths to a width less than the pocket bottoms, in applying the plate to a concave surface, and monogram slugs of a size approximating the size of the bottoms of the pockets and adapted to be secured there- 1n.

5. As a new article of manufacture, a

monogrammed escutcheon plate of bendable material and including an ornamental enamel field portion of roughened formation accommodating enamel coating in the pits thereof and substantially free from enamel at the protuberances thereof.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a monogrammed escutcheon plate including a plate portion adapted to be secured upon a support-ing surface, frame members rising from the face of the plate and defining pockets for the reception of removable straightwalled monogram slugs, the walls of said pockets being shaped to guide said slugs into place.

7. A monogram structure or the like including a relatively thin base plate, having a relatively fiat rear face adapted to be adhesively connected to a supporting surface, the front face of the plate including a raised marginal border to define a relatively sunken field, frame forming ribs rising from the field and defining shallow pockets, the bottoms of which are substantially flush with the field, flat character slugs of area and contour substantially identical with the bottoms of said pockets and of thickness approximately equal to the depth of said pockets snugly fitting and secured therein, the walls of said pockets flaring outwardly with respect to the edges of said character bearing slugs.

8. A monogram structure or the like including a relatively thin base plate having minute depressions in its rear face adapted to receive adhesive material for securing the plate to a supporting surface, the front face of the plate including a raised marginal border to define a relatively sunken field, frame forming ribs rising from the field and defining shallow pockets, the bottoms of said pockets being roughened to facilitate ceinenting fiat character bearing slugs therein, the pocket defining edges of said ribs being shaped to afford cavities for cement extruded from said pocket bottoms as the slugs are applied and to afford access for the insertion of a sharp pointed slug removing tool.

Signed at New York, in the county of and lState of New York, November A. D. .1928.

MICHAEL CHERNOW. 

